The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Laing gives Argos coach Scott Milanovich an interesting roster option should he play well enough to start ahead of an import as CFL rules make it mandatory that seven non-imports start every game.

“Laing is a talented Canadian player that we targeted as a top futures prospect during last year’s draft,” GM Jim Barker said. “We believe he will give us excellent depth on our defensive line and we look forward to seeing him compete in this year’s training camp.”

The Argos could also have more good news sooner than later. Barker gambled by taking McMaster star offensive lineman Matt Sewell with his No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, knowing full well he had signed a contract with the NFL’s Tennessee Titans.

But Sewell, arguably the top offensive lineman in Canadian university football last season, was waived on Wednesday by the Titans, meaning he could be playing with the Double Blue this season provided he doesn’t get picked up by another NFL team.

Laing was drafted ninth overall by the Argos in last year’s CFL draft. The Edmonton-born player was selected even though he still had one year left of eligibility at Iowa State University.

In his senior year, he had 42 tackles and three quarterback sacks in 12 games.

The club also announced the signing of import defensive lineman Antonio Leak from Henderson State University. Leak spent four years at HSU with his best season coming as a freshman when he collected 44 tackles and two sacks.

In another move, the Argos released quarterback Alex Brink a month after signing the former Winnipeg Blue Bomber passer and also announced they had signed former Abilene Christian pivot Mitchell Gale.

Gale, a 23 year-old quarterback out of Abilene Christian, threw for nearly 3,000 yards in his senior season. He completed 60 per cent of his passes and had 20 touchdowns in just 11 games. Over his four years with the Wildcats, Gale accumulated over 12,000 passing yards and 97 touchdowns in 45 games. His 12,109 total career passing yards rank first in school and Lone Star Conference history. Most recently, he attended mini-camp with the NFL’s St. Louis Rams.

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